Propositions
by whoa nellie
Summary: After the destruction of the Enterprise E, the Picards must make choices about their future. This story is a follow-up to the Whoa Nellie TNG story Mithras.


Title: Propositions

Author: Whoa Nellie

Series: TNG

Codes: P/V

Summary: After the destruction of the Enterprise E, the Picards must make choices about their future. This story is a follow-up to the Whoa Nellie TNG story Mithras.

Author's notes: Originally posted to ASC on August 7, 2008, this story has been edited down from NC-17 to an R-rated version. If you are over 18 and prefer to read the original version, it and our other Picard/Vash stories can be found at our website listed on our author page.

As always: Paramount owns all the marbles. We just have a lot more fun playing with them.

Feedback is always appreciated, posted or e-mail.

Propositions

In the social science building at Starfleet Academy, Archaeology Councilmember Vash Picard sat behind the desk of her office. It had only been three months since she and Jean-Luc had returned to Earth after the destruction of the Enterprise. Her office was crammed with half-unpacked boxes and it had taken her nearly an hour to find the references she wanted for the lecture on pictographic languages that she was preparing. She paused for a moment at the unexpected ping against the window behind her. Hearing it again, she got up from the chair and went to open the window. The sight of Jean-Luc in full uniform standing below her window casually leaning against a tree bouncing a few pebbles in his open palm caused her to laugh. "There's this new-fangled invention called a door."

"I wasn't in the mood to run the gauntlet of cadets I'd have to go through to get to Professor Legs' office door," he offered in explanation.

Vash rolled her eyes at his use of a moniker bestowed on her by a couple of male students while she was guest lecturing for Professor Switzer at The Hawking Institute for Interstellar Sciences. Unbeknownst to the two young knaves, Jean-Luc had overheard the remark and had taken great delight in teasing her with it ever since. "I have not heard of any Starfleet cadet calling me that and I guarantee they wouldn't dare say it with you in earshot."

"No, they certainly would not." Picard bounced the small pebbles in his hand. Vash was a beautiful and vivacious woman. He knew well the effect his wife's presence had on men of all ages. "But, they don't have to. Having once been a cadet myself, one of the more undisciplined, loud-mouthed, cocky ones, I can guarantee you the sobriquet has been used for you and more than likely preceded by the words 'hot damn'."

"Since you're standing amid the flowers and shrubs throwing rocks at my office window in a very uncaptainly display of delinquency, I'm going to assume that your next posting is not the commandant of Starfleet Academy," she quipped before chiding. "And be careful, Boothby let me pick out the exact color of impatiens I wanted around that tree."

"They don't compare to you, the most beautiful flower on the planet," he bantered suavely while openly appraising her.

The adulation was completely over the top; still her heart skipped a beat at the glint in his eyes, his barely-there smile and the sound of his bedroom baritone. "So, is there a reason for your regression to randy cadet?"

"Why don't you climb down from your ivory tower and find out?" The dare was delivered with a decidedly wolfish undertone.

"I have a lecture on deciphering pictographic languages I have to finish." She leaned out the window a little further looking down and then back at him. "And it's a good ten feet from the window ledge to the ground."

"You could give that lecture in your sleep and I'm sure it's not the first time you've climbed out a window," he taunted playfully. Dropping the pebbles, he dusted his hands. "I'll catch you."

"The last time I snuck out a window I wasn't wearing a couture silk dress suit with Rigelian leather pumps," she gestured to the sapphire blue silk suit that she was wearing.

"I'm the fellow who paid for the couture suit and Rigelian leather pumps. Come on down, we're going to play hooky for the afternoon. I have something I want to show you."

"I've already seen that, Johnny," she retorted impishly as she slipped out of her shoes.

Her off-colored innuendo signaled his victory even before she tossed her shoes down to the ground next to him. With the swift assurance that comes only from practice, she climbed out the window to gracefully perch herself on the edge of the sill. Seeing her expectant expression, he moved to stand directly under her and she began to climb down. "Hot damn, indeed," he marveled quietly to himself his current position offering him a delightful view. Enjoying the way her skirt molded itself to her and the perfect roundness of her backside, he reached up to span her waist with his hands and gently lower her to the ground. When she turned in his arms to face him he dropped a quick kiss on her lips before she could say anything. Retrieving her shoes, he knelt in front of her and slipped the first elegant pump on her foot. The shapely length of leg proved too much of an irresistible lure. After placing the second shoe on her foot his fingertips slid from her ankle up the curve of her calf to the back of her knee.

Inhaling sharply, Vash clutched Jean-Luc's shoulder for balance as a shiver ran through her at his teasing touch. "I'm sure there are more secluded spots on campus much better suited for a tryst."

"Yes, there are," he chuckled. He stood and reached for her hand, guiding her onto the sidewalk. "But we're actually headed for the Kirk."

…………………………………..

Sitting comfortably in her chair onboard the Kirk, Vash watched Jean-Luc's hands expertly move over the controls, smoothly piloting the Delta Flyer-class shuttle. "So, where are we running off to?"

"Utopia Planitia Fleet Yards," he answered. "You're aware that Starfleet has been planning an expedition toward the Delta Quadrant, a convoy of at least three ships, a large one like a Galaxy-class, a science vessel and a military escort."

From her position behind and to the left of him, she looked out over his shoulder at the stars racing by the window. "Beverly seemed very intrigued by the idea when Deanna and she talked about it before. She referenced a generational ship that Voyager encountered in the Delta Quadrant. Starfleet brass felt that several ships of mostly married couples and families could set out on an expedition of infinite length. From what I recall, the focus would be on pure exploration and first contacts. She called it an interstellar Federation colony that would stay in touch using the data stream transmissions that they used to communicate with Voyager."

"Beverly has accepted command of the research/medical ship." Carefully navigating his way into the shipyards, he pointed to the ship directly in front of them. "Captain Beverly Crusher's ship the USS Pasteur."

Thrilled for her good friend, she couldn't help but quip, "Chakotay has always seemed to covet the role of captain's wife."

"He can only hope to revel in it the way you do, chere," he teased.

The next ship to come into view was slightly larger than the Pasteur with a harder edge to her. Vash surmised, "I take it that is the military escort."

"The USS Titan under the command of Captain William T. Riker." Picard was unable keep the pride in his former first officer out of his voice. He deliberately piloted the flyer alongside the ship to keep her windows full with the Titan until the last possible moment.

"Mother pussbucket," Vash gasped at the sight of the enormous ship emerging from behind the Titan. The ship was easily one of the largest Starfleet vessels Vash had ever seen, combining the size and grandeur of the galaxy class with the sleek lines of a sovereign class. Standing up from her chair, she moved down to stand beside Jean-Luc, her hand resting on his shoulder. She inhaled sharply when she read the name and registry number across the saucer section – NCC-1701-F USS Enterprise.

"The Enterprise F the first of the Enterprise class designed for deep space exploration, to boldly go where no one has gone before," Picard announced, delighting in his wife's obvious astonishment. "I keep telling people there are plenty of letters in the alphabet."

Vash knew it wasn't their home yet she felt a rush of elation to see the Enterprise rise like a phoenix from the ashes. "Is it possible for us to go aboard?"

"She's still a number of months away from launch but all life support and environmental controls are up and running so a limited tour is possible." With her reaction being exactly what he had hoped for, he opened a channel and hailed the vessel, "Enterprise, this is the Kirk requesting permission to dock."

"Enterprise to Kirk, permission granted to dock in shuttlebay four. Welcome aboard."

………………………………………………..

The decks and corridors of the vast ship seemed uninhabited except for the occasional small group of engineers working on various ship systems. Picard led Vash onto the deserted bridge, which was illuminated only by the emergency working lights. "It seems no one is working up here at the moment."

"It looks like a much larger version of the bridge on the Enterprise E." Vash surveyed the surrounding stations while making her way down to the command chair.

"In consideration of this ship's emphasis on deep space exploration, more room was allotted for science stations on the bridge," he explained. He noticed the way she cautiously regarded the command chair. It gave him the perfect opening to discuss why he brought her here. With a chuckle he teased, "now you've never been shy about making yourself at home in my command chair before."

Had she heard him right? Startled, she turned to face him. "Your command chair?"

"Her center seat has been offered to me in a proposal that also included you heading up the archaeology department onboard," he replied as he made his way down to stand in front of her.

"You told them yes – right?"

"I told them several things, one of which was that I needed to discuss the different options with my wife." He took her hand and kissed the back of it. "This is an extended deep space mission."

"Explore places no human has ever seen, now who can resist an offer like that?" She settled herself comfortably into the command chair. "I must admit that I'm surprised. I half-expected Starfleet Command to hold you down and pin admiral insignia on you."

"They did attempt it; in fact, the original proposal was for me to command this mission as Admiral Picard. Of course that would put someone else in the Enterprise's center seat and all I could hear was James Kirk telling me 'don't let them promote you... don't let them transfer you... don't let anything take you off the bridge of that ship'. I told them that I would only consider commanding the mission as the captain of the Enterprise. They acquiesced," he admitted with a wry smile.

"Speaking of James Kirk, what about your favorite toy down in Shuttlebay Four?" she inquired, letting her hands glide over the armrest panels.

"She'll be coming along, but all of the shuttles will be Delta Flyer-class," he replied. He started making his way around the bridge on an impromptu inspection of the progress made since his first visit several days ago. "There's no reason to take along shuttles that were completely insufficient for Voyager during her time in the Delta Quadrant. The Delta Flyer-class shuttles are going to be the standard for deep space exploration missions and this expedition will be the first to carry a full complement of the Delta Flyers on all of the ships."

"This chair is quite comfortable and very spacious," she remarked off-handedly, recognizing aspects of his 'Captain Picard' demeanor surfacing.

"Good to know since I will being spending a great deal of time in it." He briefly checked several consoles, pleased with the ship's progress.

The sight of him on the bridge, the aura of power and masculine virility that were part of his commanding presence never failed to create butterflies in her stomach. She murmured, "You're where you belong."

"Hmmm?" he turned and headed back toward her.

"You belong on the bridge of a starship, on the bridge of the Enterprise," she reiterated. Her imagination began to wander through a familiar and particularly favorite daydream. His lips, firm but pliant take command of hers as the consummate starship captain, Starfleet's legendary hero, kissed her passionately while standing on the bridge of his ship. Her tongue darted out of its own volition, to moisten her lips. "Seeing you here, I can't help but think of –"

"Of this," he cut her off and reached out to pull her from his command chair and into his arms for a deeply-impassioned kiss. He saw the desire in her blue eyes and knew well her fascination with 'the man in uniform,' as she called it, especially on the bridge. Coaxing her lips to open to him, he felt her arms slide around his neck and her body melt against him. He slipped his tongue past her parted lips to gently stroke and caress every corner of her mouth, savoring the sweet taste. Gradually the kiss intensified until his tongue fiercely plundered the depths of her mouth. She matched his passion, her tongue eagerly meeting the demands of his.

Vash was reeling, being on the bridge with Jean-Luc in uniform only served to magnify the overwhelming emotions this man always ignited in her. It was one of those kisses where his mouth made love to hers rather than simply kissing her. By the time he broke off the kiss, the heady sensations had sent her pulse racing and her knees felt as if they were about to buckle under her. She swallowed, trying to regain her composure. With her hands splayed her across his chest, she pushed herself back slightly. Her eyes fluttered open to gaze up at him her voice still slightly breathless. "Wow . . . Damn, that was –" Finding herself at a loss for words, she simply vowed, "someday, somehow, I will tempt you to do that again."

He tenderly brushed the smooth skin of her cheek with the back of his fingers. "I'm tempted to do that every time you walk onto my bridge."

"I'll make sure to remember that," she quipped impishly. Armed with that informative tidbit, she made her way to the turbolift using just the perfect amount of sway in her hips and bounce in her step.

"Of that I have no doubt," he chuckled, following her onto the lift.

…………………………………………

The doors closed behind them and Vash leaned against the wall of the turbolift in a casual hip-hitched pose. "So, where to next?"

"Deck 8," he answered while tapping the destination into a nearby keypad. "I thought we'd take a look at our quarters. They're only half-finished but this way you can start thinking about the different amenities you might want to add seeing as it will be home for a very long --" he broke off when the turbolift suddenly stopped between decks and the lights went out except for the soft red emergency lighting. He returned his attention to the keypad only to find it unresponsive. He tried the voice interface, "Picard to engineering." When no response was forthcoming, he tried again, "computer." Nothing.

"It's like we're stuck in a bad holonovel; our unplanned tour takes an unexpected turn."

Ignoring his wife's flippant remark for the moment, Picard tapped his communicator, "Picard to engineering"

"Lefler here, Captain. I wasn't aware that you were onboard. What can I do for you, sir?"

"My wife and I were taking an unscheduled tour of the ship and at the moment, we seem to be stuck in turbolift three after just having left the bridge."

"Uh-oh," the young woman's reply came over his combadge.

It would be different if they were in space, but in space dock, he couldn't help but see the humor in the situation. "Lieutenant, uh-oh is right there near the top of the list of things that a ship captain does not want to hear from an engineer. Would you kindly elaborate?"

"Sorry, sir. All but emergency power been shut down while a team works on the main power coupling in that section. It's a good thing you had your communicator with you otherwise we would never have known you were there. None of the security or communication systems have been installed in those turbolifts yet."

Vash spoke up, "Robin, you mean without his communicator you have no way of even detecting us let alone communicating with us."

"Yes, ma'am. Captain, the power is going to be offline for about ninety minutes. I can have the team stop --"

"No, that will not be necessary, Lieutenant." Picard cut her off knowing in the time it would take the team to secure the power coupling and restore power they could be halfway through the work they needed to do. "We'll wait it out. Picard out."

"Well isn't this just a delightful turn of events?" Vash purred. "The current situation, with the ship still being under construction and all, quite conveniently presents a golden opportunity. I mean there is absolutely no way you could be caught with your pants down -- literally." Vash emphasized her words by deliberately unfastening her suit jacket and rolling her shoulders to allow the jacket to glide down her arms. It dropped in a crumpled heap on the deck of the lift.

"Mrs. Picard, you're trying to seduce me," he noted in a rich, bedroom baritone. His face held a hint of a smile. His eyes were drawn to the way that the delicate material of her blouse followed her body like a second skin, trailing over the lush curves of her breasts and down her flat stomach to her slim waist.

While sauntering over to stand in front of him, she unbuttoned the top three buttons on her blouse, exposing a hint of the curves beneath. "We both know you've often entertained fantasies about being stuck in a turbolift with me."

"Having sex in a stalled turbolift is a very common fantasy. That is why it's considered a cliché, chere," he defended himself. Her playfully coy gaze while she fingered the skin bared by the open buttons wasn't helping his internal debate between wishes and professionalism.

"Let's embrace the cliché," she cooed seductively as she leaned in to brush feathery kisses along his strong jawline. Vash suddenly found herself with her back against the turbolift wall. Her mouth was seized by his in a voracious kiss, the coarse rasp of his tongue along the sensitive depths sending heated waves crashing over her. The almost illicit nature of their tryst added to the eroticism of the moment. The thought flashed through her mind that if she'd known he was in the mood for sex in an almost-public locale, she would have seduced him in his command chair. That image drew a groan from her throat. She braced her hands on his shoulders and wrapped her leg high around his waist to pull him tight to her. Having her small body caught between the wall of the turbolift and the tightly leashed power of his lean, muscular build fueled her own spiraling desires. Much later and pleasantly sated, she prompted, "So, Johnny, are you going to let go of me or are you intent on traumatizing some poor ensign who just happens to discover us when the power comes back on?"

"Merde." With a sigh, he released the grip he had on her hips but steadied her until she was once again standing on her own two feet. Taking a step back, he began to straighten his uniform before sitting down on the floor of the lift his back against the wall. "So, what now?"

Taking immense gratification in his plasma-leak sigh, she picked up her jacket from the floor folding it into a pillow and placing it on his lap. There was just enough room for her to lay down on the floor with her head on her jacket nestled in his lap. She cooed up at him, "You could spend the time in adoration of your wonderful wife."

FINIS


End file.
